Woven Journals

Kristin Kuhns

February 8 – May 31, 2022

Woven Journals is a collection of mixed media studio work created by West Salem artist Kristin Kuhns during the Covid 19 Pandemic closures. While staying close to home, she and her family took comfort in their regular walks through Minto Brown Park, a familiar place of respite and for exercise in Kuhns' life for years. The works in the exhibit chronicle familiar elements from Minto Brown with a subtext of living during a global pandemic. The pieces weave contrasting images of comfort and disturbance, and written notes and thoughts are journaled within the woven patterns. 

For more than two decades, Kuhns has used the concept of landscape in her work to address issues of land domestication and conservation. Her interest in landscape was born in her foundation years growing up in Western Oregon and studying art and science at Sprague High School in the 1970’s. It was at that time that Oregon's Beach Bill and the Department of Land Conservation & Development were established. These public policies and philosophies have informed and been woven into the narrative her work.

A companion show at the Library Art Hall focused on “vocabulary”, the visual elements and techniques Kuhns uses in her mix media works.